Monthly Archives: June 2013

An excerpt from Price Point/Scene 3 (“The Impossible Cycle”). Here, we gather at the site of many intense economic decisions—the kitchen table—and build a polyrhythm loaded with frustration & catharsis.

As we prepare for the 2nd weekend of ‘Price Point’ in the SKETCHBOOK 13 performance festival, here’s some audience feedback we received from last weekend:

“That was wonderful. You were like one breath, different registers…Excellent.”

–Khadijah Kysia;Wellness Practitioner

“Ohhh My Goodness, I went to church at 12pm today. Church was the Honey Pot Performance, PRICE POINT. The poesy of real talk and the energy of the pieces were honest and accessible! The poignancy of the pieces and the timing were also refreshing. The topics were current and reflected Black womyn….and the movement was intentional and completed their words. The acknowledgment of the informal economy, working poor, interpersonal violence, bills and order, bills and negotiation, clinics that dont listen, mental health….whew! it was all good and didnt beat me over the head. The only thing is that I wanted it to be an audience full of sistas for the sake of ritual and to offer reassurance and understanding to the performers. The audience was too quiet as they sat and held their breaths on the parts they did get. There was a need for call and response, “girl yes…” “Ashe” “preach” etc etc etc. so, if I can find the time to round up some sista-friends imma try to make it back to see it again in the company of familiarity.”

“Price Point is aptly named- the price that you pay for the point of the production is a relative measure of your own understanding and experience of economy and society against the show’s melodically intertwined stories, monologues, poems, media and all points in between. The show is punctuated by definitions of economic terms that become open portals through which the explorations of our financial and cultural climate take place. You can’t pin down the attitudes or emotions here just as a forecast can no longer accurately predict how money actually makes any of us feel. Price Point is a gorgeous, honest and wide-reaching account of the effects of living in a contemporary capitalist state. In short, it’s on point!”

SKETCHBOOK is Collaboraction at its best: breaking down the walls that divide theater, music, visual art, video, and the internet. Selected from hundreds of submissions, SKETCHBOOK once again brings together the collective talents of more than 150 pioneering directors, designers, actors, musicians and artists from Chicago and around the country for a jaw-dropping evening of creativity, experimentation, and celebration!